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Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


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10X  14X  18X  22X 


26X 


SOX 


— T" 

1 — 1 — 

r "T'Ti 

1^' 

! 

12X 


16X 


20X 


24X 


28X 


32X 


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et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  ndcessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mdthode. 


1 

2 

3 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

'j>:n 


BULLETIN  OF  THE  GEOLOGICAL  SOCIETY  OF  AMERICA 

Vol.  2,  pp.  529-540,  PLS.  21,  22 


CARBONIFEiiOUS  FOSSIT.S  FROM  NEWFOUNDLAND 


BY 


SIR  J.  WILLIAM  DAWSON,  F.  R.  S.,  ETC 


ROCHESTER 

PUBLISHED  BY  THE  SOCIETY 

May,  1891 


I 


BULLETIN  OF  THE  GEOLOGICAL  SOCIETY  OF  AMERICA 

Vol.  2,  pp.  529-540,  PlS.  21,22.  MaV  27,  1891 


CARBONIFEROUS  FOSSILS  FROM  NEWFOUNDLAND. 

BY  SIU  J.   WII-MAM  DAWSON,  P.  li.  S.,  ETC. 

{RpMil  hrjore  the  Society  December  .31)  1890.) 

CONTENTS. 

Page. 

Introductory  Note 529 

New  or  remarkable  Fossil  Plnnts 530 

Gymnospormea) 630 

Lopidodondreio -- 682 

Annotuted  List  ol  well-known  Plants j. 530 

llomarks  on  tlie  Coal  Formation  of  Newfoundland 638 


Introductory  Notk. 

• 

The  plants  referred  to  in  this  paper  arc  in  part  specimens  submitted  to  me 
some  years  ago  by  the  hite  Alexander  Murray,  F.  G.  S.,  Director  of  the 
Geological  Survey  of  Newfoundland;  in  part  specimens  presented  to  me 
some  time  subsequently  by  Mr.  P.  Patersou,  of  Quebec;  but  principally 
fossils  from  recent  collections  by  James  P.  Howley,  F.  G.  S.,  now  Di- 
rector of  the  Newfoundland  survey.  They  are  mostly  of  familiar  forms, 
characteristic  of  the  coal  formation  as  it  exists  in  Nova  Scotia  and  Cape 
Breton,  and  especially  of  the  lower  and  middle  portions  of  it.  A  few  are 
new,  and  some  others  raise  intere.'^ting  general  questions.  None  of  them 
seem  referable  to  the  lower  Carboniferous  or  Horton  series  or  to  the  upper 
Coal  formation  or  Permo-Carboniferous.  The  strata  in  which  they  occur 
are  similar  to  those  of  the  coal  formation  of  Cape  Breton,  and  according  to 
Mr.  Howley  contain  several  productive  beds  of  coal. 

The  Carboniferous  of  St.  George's  bay,  in  western  Newfoundland,  may 
be  regarded  as  the  northeastern  outcrop  of  the  beds  which  dip  under  the 
waters  of  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence  in  eastern  and  northern  Cape  Breton  ; 
and  it  is  likely  that  large  areas  of  Coal  Measures  ^xist  under  the  Gulf  of 
St.  Lawrence  in  the  intervening  sj)ace.  As  exhibited  in  St.  George's  bay, 
the  Carboniferous  rocks  include  conglomerates,  sandstones,  green  and  red 
shales,  with  bands  of  limestone  and  dolomite,  and  beds  or  masses  of  gypsum, 

LXXVIII— Bum..  GKor,.  Soc.  Am.,  Vol.  2,  1890.  (529) 


5.30 


sill    ,T.    W.    bAWSOX— Kossirs    FKOM    NKWFOIM.I.A  NI). 


uhovo  wl.ich  occur  «an,l.stonos  an.l  .sl.alcs  roprosontinf;  ti.e  MillsU.nc  grit  and 

coal  iormatiou,  and  holding  the  workable  .seams  of  c.al 

In  colleoii..n.s  from  the  lower  Carboniferous  limestone,  ma.le  by  Dr.  Robert 

IJeJ  and  Mr.  I  aterson,  I  recognized  eleven  species  previously  recorded  from 
the  lower  Carboniferous  of  Nova  Scotia,  and  two  new  species,  ^ert^lltes 
murray^^n,\  M,eroch.ilns  tcrrnnovicus.  These  were  .ieseribcd  in  the  report 
ot  the  J  eter  Jledpath  museum  for  1883. 

The  fjssil  plants  are  of  interest  as  exten.ling  the  flora  of  the  Nova  Scotia 
coal  helds  a  httle  iurther  toward  the  northeast,  and  as  in.licating  the  ve^^e- 
tat.on  of  the  parts  of  the  island  oi'  Newfoundland  then  above  water,  and 
which  constitute  the  neaivst  portion  of  known  Carboniferous  land  in 
America  to  the  great  coal  fields  of  southern  Wales  and  of  England. 

I  shall  begin  with  the  description  and  discussion  of  certain  plants  which 
raise  new  points,  or  are  new  species,  and  shall  then  give  a  list  of  the  better 
known  species  with  their  localities  elsewhere. 


Nkw  or  remarkaclk  Fossil  Plants. 
oymnospkrme.t;. 

In  the  original  collection  sent  by  Mr.  Murray  there  was  a  fragment  of 
calcified  wood  uiving  its  tissues  much  disintegrated  bv  .ervstalli.ation,  so 
hat  in  longitudinal  sections  the  woody  fibers  appeared  as  in-egular  tortuous 
tubes,  reminding  one  of  those  of  the  Devonian  Ncmatoxylon:  On  treatin-r 
Iragments  with  hydrochloric  acid,  however,  it  was  possible  to  see  that  the 
wood  fibers  ha.l  two  to  three  rows  of  bordered  ,)ores,  and  that  there  were 
simple^niedullary  rays.  I  therefore  considered  the  wood  to  be  probably 
thator  Dndo.njh,  matenarlum,  so  common  in  the  coal  formation  of  Nova 
bcotia. 

In  Mr.  Howdey's  collection  there  is  a  hirge  fragment  of  a  trunk  in  a  much 
better  state  of  preservation,  aii<l  which  is  not  distinguishable  from  the 
species  just  named.  D.  matcnarhnn  is  very  al.undant  in  Nova  Scotia  and 
Cape  hreton,  and  extcn.ls  from  the  middle  coal  formation  to  tlu>  upper 
ooa  i.>nuatio,i  and  Permian,  where  it  is  associated  «ith  leafy  branches  of 
nafrua  in  such  a  manner  as  to  render  it  probable  or  certain  that  it  is  the 
wood  of  that  genus. 

I  may  remark  here  that  I  prefer  the  name  DacUryfon  to  the  m-,re  recent 
Araucarto.r^lon,  as  the  latter  implies  a  false  theory  "of  the  affinities  of  the 
wood;  and  that  I  do  not  regard  the  criteria  of  structures  of  fossil  woods  as 
sufheient  to  establish  good  species.  They  vary  much  in  different  states  of 
preservation  and  in  stems  of  different  ages,  and  the  differences  of  the  mere 
woody  structure  ,n  fossil  woods  of  different  s,,ecies  are  too  niniite  to  be  in- 


lilSTINXTION    P.KTUKKN    (OltOAITICS    AND    UADUXYLON. 


531 


t;illil)l\'  asciTtaiiiod.     For  tliis  reason  it  oftoii  happens  tliat  the  same  wood 
in  (lillerent  .states  receives  dillerenl  names,  and  tiiat  the  woods  of  different 
species  are  confounded  under  one  name.     As  an  example  of  the  latter  case, 
m  while  it  seems  certain  that  the  wood  properly  called  Diidoxy/oii  has  helonged 

•  to    Wtili-hid,  yet  there  are  two  or   three  species  of   Wnlchii  in  the  upper 

Carboniferous  of  Nova  Scotia  aiid  Prince  Edward  island,  and  1  have  not 
been  able,  after  examinin;.j  great  numbers  of  slices,  to  ascertain  a  similar 
specific  distinction  in  the  woods  showing  structure. 

.^[r.  Ilov.ley's  collection  also   contains  a  small  stem,  about  two  inches  in 

diameter,  showing  a  very  distinct  radiating  woody  structure,  with  indications 

1  <if  a  pith  destroyed  by  decay  and  compres.-  ion.     The  wood  of  this  specimen 

is  more  thin-walled  than  the  former,  with  short  and  unequal  medullary  rays 

:%  and  the  bordered  pores  less  constant  and  continuous.     These  characters  ally 

M  it   with  the  wood  of  Cordnifes,  which  I  believe  can  always,  when  well  pre- 

■  served,  be   distinguished   from    that  of   Dudoxylon.     Leaves  of    Cordnites 

borasslfoUd  also  occur  in  the  collection.  • 

Another  remarkable  specimen  is  a  quantity  of  loose  and  soft  fibrous  car- 
l)o!niceous  material  resembling  the  mineral  charcoal  of  coal.  It  contains  a 
small  amount  of  calcareous  matter,  but  not  enough  to  give  it  coherence,  and 
can  be  studied  only  after  treatment  with  nitric  acid,  when  it  presents  de- 
tached carbonaceous  fibers.  These  sliow  two  to  three  rows  of  bordered 
pores  and  traces  of  the  mciluUary  rays,  and  I  imagine  it  must  have  been  a 
wood  similar  to  the  Cordaioxylon  mentioned  in  the  last  paragraph.  JMaterial 
of  this  kind,  as  I  have  elsewhere  shown,-'-  constitutes  much  of  the  mineral 
charcoal  of  our  coals. 

Still  another  specimen,  from  Codroy  river,  presented  to  me  .some  years 
ago  by  Dr.  Robert  Bell,  is  a  black  chert,  which  when  sliced  proves  to  be  a 
limpid  (juart/  filled  with  shreds  of  vegetable  matter.  It  is,  in  short,  a  con- 
geries of  fra-ments  of  herbaceous  plants,  appearing  as  if  chopped  up  finely 
or  disintegrated  by  maceration,  and  imbedded  in  a  clear  silicious  paste. 
The  ti.ssues  oljserved  are  scalariform  vessels,  delicate  fibers  and  elongated 
cells,  and  parenchymatous  cellular  tissue,  with  occasional  remains  of  spore- 
cas"s  or  macrospores.  The  mass  may  be  characterized  as  a  silicified  vege- 
table mould  composed  of  fragments  of  tl:-!  more  delicate  tissues  not  usually 
preserved.  In  this  it  resembles  some  of  the  specimens  found  by  Mr.  Grieve 
under  the  trappean  !)eds  of  Burntisland,  in  Scotland,  v.'hich  have  been  de- 
scribed by  Professor  Williamson.  I  hope  to  make  further  examination  of  this 
material,  and  in  the  meantime  would  direct  attention  to  it  as  possibly  aflbrd. 
ing,  in  some  parts  of  it,  more  complete  organs  of  plants  than  those  in  the 
specimens  in  my  possession. 


*  Quart.  Journ.  Geol.  Soc,  vol.  XV,  1859,  p.  020. 


i 


532 


SIR   .1.    W.    DAWSON — KOSSUTH    KROM    NIOWKOUNDLANH. 


The  gyiniiospcriiioiisreiiiiiiiirf  in  the  coUt'ction  aretliiia  of  three  types  only, 


VIZ : 


1.  Dndoxyhu  VKftprhirhim,  the  tnust  common  coniferous  wood  in  tiie  c  ml 
formation  of  Nova  Scotia  ; 

2.  Cordaio.ri/fon,  sp.,  tlie  wood  probably  of  the  species  of  Cordniten  found 
in  the  «ame  fornuition  ; 

3.  Corddltcs  hor(i.i.tifo/l(i,  leaves  of  which  species  occur  in  the  slialcs,  asso- 
ciated with  the  woods. 

i,Ki'uioiii;Ni»Rr:.ic. 

The  f^enus  LcpldodoidriDi  and  its  allied  gduis  Lcpldophlnios  are  at  present 
niucli  involved  in  tiiat  confusion  which  must  necessarily  result  from  the  de- 
scription of  mere  fragments  of  large  trees.  The  trunk  of  a  Lepldodendron 
retaining  its  rotundity,  or  more  or  less  flattened,  showing  the  outer  surface 
or  the  inner  surface  of  the  epidermal  layer,  or  the  surface  of  the  woody  zone, 
or  thejnere  surface  of  the  axis,  will  under  all  these  ditterent  conditions  pre- 
sent very  different  appearances,  while  leafless  or  leafy  branches  or  branehlets 
in  like  manner  are  "xtremely  different  from  one  another.  Hence  the  de- 
scription of  fragments  of  stems  without  leaves  or  fruit  has  encumbered  the 
subject  with  a  load  (>f  uncertain  synonymy. 

My  Newlbundlan  1  collections  contain  at  least  one  species  which  shows  the 
character  of  the  old  stem,  the  branches  and  the  leaves,  and  which  besides 
belongs  to  a  type  of  great  interest  in  its  relation  to  other  lepi.lodendra.  It 
may  be  described  as  follows  : 


I 

■) 

■I 

1 


LEPIOODKNDRON  MURRAYANUM,*  SI'.  SOV. 

(Figures  1,  2  iuicl  3,  pliito  20.) 

The  old  stem  (figures  2  and  .'J);  surfa-^e  immediately  below  the  thin  epi- 
dermis has  pronounced  elongate  elliptical  leaf-bases,  .'>  cm.  long  and  8  mm. 
broad,  running  into  each  other  vertically  l)y  a  narrow  isthmus,  so  as  to 
give  from  some  points  of  view  the  aj)pearance  of  interrupted  ribs.  The  leaf- 
bases  and  borders  are  striate  longitudimiUy,  and  have  on  the  lower  jiart  some 
transverse  wrinkles.  The  leaf-scar  is  sub-central  but  nearer  the  toj)  of  the 
leaf-base,  ovate  temling  to  rhond)ic,  in  the  natural  state  inclined  strongly 
inward  or  prominent  at  the  lower  edge.  Vascular  scars  crowded  in  the  cen- 
ter of  the  leaf-scar;  the  two  outer  meet  below  in  a  hi[)pocrepian  form  with 
the  cent;'al  scar  in  the  middle  This  stem  has  probably  been  six  inches  or 
more  in  diameter,  and  has  an  impression  of  the  axis  in  the  interior.  Th-, 
axis  is  longitudinally  striate  and  oidy  i  of  an  inch  in  diameter. 


•  In  MS.  notes  .sent  to  the  late  Mr.  .Murray  tlie  name  iSiijUlariuidcs  was  proposed,  but  this  I  have 
foun-i  to  be  proocoupieci. 


|)i;S('l!ll'Tl(>\    ni'    I.KIMDODKNDUON    MUHUAYANTM. 


533 


Leafy  hranclioH  (fi>,Mire8  1*  and  .">);  tliitikisli,  with  leaf-bases  Hhortcr  and 
hrouder,  being  about  8  mm.  long  and  4  mm.  l,road,  but  simihirly  marked. 
Leaf  HcarH  rounded,  rhombic,  with  tlie  vascuhir  sears  ch)se  togetlier.  Leaves 
ai)out  2  mm.  wide  atid  throe  inehi-n  or  more  in  length.  Some  of  thesii  leaves 
aresutKeiently  preserved  to  show  iinde'-the  microscope  the sealariform  vessels 
of  the  midrib  in  a  pyriti/ed  state.  Loose  leaves,  probably  of  the  same  species, 
are  straight,  pointed,  and  three  to  four  inches  in  length. 

Tile  fruit  has  not  been  seen,  though  there  are  in  the  beds  certain  llattened 
lepitlostrol)!  which  have  been  long  and  eylindrical,  and  also  two  forms  of  the 
genus  fjepUlophyf/nm  of  the  types  of  L.  tviangulare  and  L.  lumeolatum  of 
authors.     Some  of  thes6  nniy  have  belonged  to  the  present  species. 

In  the  coal  formation  of  Nova'Hcotia  there  is  a  S])ecie8  which  I  have  de- 
scribeil  as  L.  cUj'ioneii'^e  (figures  4  to  8,  plates  21  and  22)  fronj  its  localitj.f 
and  of  which  I  have  found  very  perfect  specimens.  It  is  in  soine  respects  so 
near  to  the  above  that  1  have  doubted  its  specihc  distinctness,  though  on 
careful  comparison  there  seem  sufficient  grounds  for  a  difterence  of  name. 
I  therefore  figure  this  species  also,  more  especially  as  it  has  not  before  been 
figured  and  as  it  shows  the  fruit  and  habit  of  growth. 

It  will  be  observed  that  this  species  agrees  with  the  last  in  tlie  forms  of 
the  leaf-bases  and  in  the  length  of  the  leaves,  which  are,  however,  wider  and 
sometimes  as  much  as  five  inches  in  length,  while  the  leaf-bases  are  trans- 
versely furrowed  above  as  well  as  below  the  scars.  The  leaf-bases  also  are 
somewhat  ditferent  in  shape  and  more  spirally  arranged,  v  '<    .es  are 

\{)i\^(ir  in  L.cHftoiiense.     Additional  specimenri  mij,ht,  how  lem  to 

be  varieties  of  one  species.     The  foliage  reminds  one  at  fi  't  of 

L.  l()Hf/!fo!iiim  of  Sternberg,  but  both  leaves  and  scars  are  i  "nt 

in  detail. 

I  would  remark  here  that  the  leafy  branches  in  figure  8  ( pla.,  lot 

a  "  restoratioi',"  but  taken  from  a  sketch  in  my  note-book  of  a  specimt;.!  ex- 
posed on  a  large  slab  of  sandstone.  It  is  the  more  necessary  to  remark  this 
as  several  European  paleol)()r,anists  have  borrowed  similar  figures  from 
my  papers  without  acknowledgemnt,  and  nave  jirinted  them  as  "  restora- 
tions." It  may  aldo  be  remarked  that  though  the  leaf-bases  of  L.  vUftonensG 
are  smaller  in  the  older  part  of  the  stem  than  those  of  L.  inurndjiiinun,  this 
difierence  may  be  more  apparent  than  real,  since  the  specimcM  of  the  latter 
may  be  from  the  main  trunk,  and  that  of  the  former  from  one  of  the  larger 
branches  onl). 

These  plants  raise  several  interesting  points  in  i'(_;ard  to  the  lepidodendra. 
As  I  have  elsewhere  pointed  ont,|  the  growth  in  diameter  of  stems  of  lepido- 


*  Piguro  1  is  iinforliinately  inverted  in  the  plato. 

tfJeoloKiciil  History  of  I'lunts,  188S,  p.  1(14. 

t  Ibid,  p.  102;  also  Acadian  Geology,  1878,  p.  452. 


I 


534 


<nt  .).  \v.  DAWSON — i''(Hsn,H  i''it<»>r  nkwi'ihndi.am). 


(leiidrii  took  pliicc  in  three  (lirtL-rent  ways;  In  mmw,  lis  in  A.  Ulcrnlicujl,  tlie 
1)11)  K  retains  itn  vitality  in  hucIi  a  numn'jr  tlnit  tiie  leaf-ltases  in(T(uwe  in  size 
anil  tlo  not  l)ec()ine  . separated  from  each  other.  In  otliers,  as  in  L.  nilthvU 
in'utniim  M\i\  L.  pictocn/^e,  thv  leaf-hases  remain  .small  and  the  intervenin),' 
hark  heeonies  torn  in  Htri|w,  leaving'  wide  gas!i(!.s  without  any  scars.  An  in- 
termediate typv!  is  that  whieh  we  have  in  //.  rlnwuum  and  L.  cornufittiuii,  in 
whiel.  ihescarrf  inerea.se  only  sli^ditly  in  si/e  and  then  heeoine  .se|iarated  hy 
rini.s  of  .siijrhtly  wrinkled  hnrk.  It  would  appear,  from  the  oh.servations  of 
\Villiam,son  and  othens,  that  the  first  condition  appertains  to  those  Lepido- 
d"ndra  that  possess  only  a  very  .slight  development  .»f  the  woody  axis,  while 
tiie  second  oijcnrs  in  tho.se  species  hi  winch  the  woody  zone  hecome.s  thick 
and  strong. 

The  two  species  nhove  referred  to  evidently  helong  to  the  first  category; 
and,  as  the  st(  nis  found  are  not  Iarg(>,  still  older  stems  wonld  prohahly  show 
larger  leaf-l)a,ses.  Such  species  of  lepidodendra  approach  nearer  than  others 
to  the  genus  L,'p!dopldolon  in  Mie  expansion  of  the  old  leaf-bases  and  the 
snnill  development  of  the  woody  axis;  an(  -  is  interesting  to  notice  that  they 
also  resemltle  them  in  the  great  length  of  the  lenves  and  the  thickness  of  the 
hranehes.  The  lej)idoilendr.i  who.se  hraneheseiid  in  s'eiiderspravsare  usimllv, 
if  not  always,  tho.se  in  whieh  the  woody  a.xis  is  large  an'l  tho  hark  of  the  old 
stems  torn  and  wrinkled. 

I  may  add  that  these  differences  are  most  important  in  the  discrimination 
of  species  of  the  genus  LeitUhnhndnin  hy  the  markings  on  the  stems,  though 
they  have  been  too  often  overlooked. 

Another  noteworthy  point  is  the  manner  in  which  the  fruit  of  7y.  rZ/Jifou- 
eit^e  is  home  on  slender  branchlets  with  few  an<l  short  leaves,  extending  from 
the  thick  hranehes.  .Such  branchlets  might,  if  alone,  be  readily  mistaken 
for  branches  of  other  species.  They  also  hel|)  to  explain  the  .scars  of  fmcti- 
fication  often  found  on  lepidodendra,  as  well  as  on  the  so-called  ulodendra, 
some  of  which,  however,  are  not  generically  distinct  from  the  lepidodendra, 
and  on  Fjepid(>plili)i<>>{.  Fn  some  species,  especially  of  the  latter  genus,  these 
scars  are  seen  fn^m  their  form  to  represent  sessile  cones,  usually  of  large 
size;  !)i:t  in  other  cashes  they  are  merely  roun-l  marks,  as  if  indicating  the 
insertion  of  l)ranches  or  buds.  The  little  fertile  branchlets  of  L.  cUffoneiisc, 
which  would  probably  die  after  the  maturity  of  the  fruit,  would  leave  such 
scar.-',  and  may  prol»ably  account  for  sonie  of  the  less  intelligii)le  of  them. 

If  now  we  compare  our  two  species  above  described  with  others  foun<l  in 
America  and  Europe,  and  most  of  which  are  charaCverized  merely  by  the 
forms  of  the  leaf-ba.ses  and  scars,  we  nuiy  exclude  from  consideration  all 
those  in  which  the  l-.if-bases  do  not  expaiul  in  growth,  and  eouiine  ourselves 
CO  those  having  living  and  expanding  leaf-b  i  es.  At  first  sight  we  might 
imagine  that  these  would  he  the  oldest,  as  being  simpler  than  the  others  in 


If 
I 

.  1 


m 


t 


I,l>«ITS    Ol'    I.I.PMionr.NDUON    AMI   SK-II.I.AIM A. 


nn.") 


i 


utriirtiiro  ;  Imt,  tlioii^'li  soiiif  of  <  lie  lOrian  or  I  h-viniiiiii  species  arc  imilmldy  of 
tliixtyin".  in  tlic  Inv.'rCuilxiiiili'roUM,  w'sorc  the  K  ,titlo(li'inira  liist  Ix'caine  iin- 
jH)itaiit,  the  Hpeeies  witli  '"ut'-WuMes  H.epuruted  by  wrinkled  l)arl\  or  l)y  exfmn- 
si<iii  of  thcM'ortioal  tissiii-s  iM'twceii  ihe  Iciit'-liascs  iire  anparcntiy  '»re<himiiiaiit, 
tlioiiirl.  (ifhern  al.xo  exist,  and  tiieiype  wliieh  wo  aie  now  considering  perinipa 
culminates  ii;  the  oml  t'orrnatioii. 

We  may  first  reler  to  L.  I'lmlulinii  ul'  lAwjueronx,  with  vortical  ro'.va  of 
corriiL'ated  leafl)ases,  hut  sei-arated  hy  distinct  loni^itudinal  spiiccH  of 
wrinkled  hark.  This  is  a  lower  ("arhoniterous  species,  and  is  compared  hy 
Ijes(|uerenx  with  his  L.  htitizl  and  with  L.  vulLiniiuniinnnii,  Sternherg,  of 
the  Enrupear!  Carlioniferous,  hoth  of  wliii  h  have  strong  points  of  reseni- 
iilaiK-e  in  the  characters  of  t!i  leaf-bases,  though  ditii'ring  in  the  scars  and 
in  the  leaves,  so  far  as  known.  The  L.  ivorthcni  of  Jies(iuereux  is  ])ased  oi; 
fiagments  closely  allied  in  general  form  to  onr  species.  So  also  is  (S.  (//yj- 
lotcijioides,  a  species  found  in  tlu;  lower  coals  ns  far  west  as  Arkansas.  None 
of  ti  "ny  species  are,  \  tliink,  sutKcientiy  near  to  be  identified  with  our  New- 
found.,ind  and  Nova  Scotia  species,  tho'  :;'i  as  imwt  of  them  are  known  only 
by  the  l)ark  of  ohi  stems,  this  may  admit  of  <lonl)t.  In  any  case,  lepido- 
(h'lidra  of  this  general  type  and  aspect  were  widely  distributed,  both  in 
JMirnpe  an<l  America,  in  the  fJarhoiiiferous,  and  especially  in  the  l.wer 
|)ortions  of  the  coal  lormation,  to  which  in  all  probability  the  Newfound- 
land specimens  belong. 

1  may  a(M  here  that  Zeiller*  figures  a  species  as  L.  vcllhchnianwn  which 
can  scarcely  l)e  that  species  and  may  be  a  branch  of  L.  ini  rrin/((nant,  with 
whi(!ii  it  agrees  very  cl.>sely.  The  same  plant  is  figure,  by  Ivcnault.f  The 
leaf-bases  of  the  Newfoundland  species  have  also  some  resemblance  to  those 
of /r.  (icit/enlum,  Sternberg,  but  dirter  in  detail. 

Another  interesting  (piest ion  rises  hei'e as  to  the  limits  o? Lejiidodendnm-AinX 
Sigillaria,  as  duternnned  by  their  surface  markings.  The  markings  of  the 
hitter  have  usually  been  considered  as  characterized  by  the  leaf-scars  being 
placed  in  vertical  rows  and  ot'len  on  continuous  prominent  ribs,  and  also  by 
the  fact  that  the  lateral  vascular  soars  are  mcch  larger  than  the  central  one  ; 
l)ut  in  such  u  case  as  Lescpiereux's  species,  //.  costnlmn,  the  confluent  leaf- 
bases  in  vertical  rows  have  the  efieet  of  ribs,  and  in  a  less  degree  the  same 
remark  applies  to  L.  miiriaifinnui.  I  may  add  that  when  one  happens  to 
find  young  stems  of  Si(j!l/aria  not  comjjressed,  the  leaf-bases  are  seen  to  pro- 
ject in  the  manner  of  those  of  Lrpldodendron,  and  that  in  some  non-ribbed 
Sigillarids,  as  in  L.  clcr/diix,  the  very  young  branches  h.ave  the  scars  arranged 
spirally.;!;     In  connection  with  thisl  may  obsefve  that  San veur§  has  described 


*  Vegetiuix  lossiles  (111  Terrain  Ituillier,  18811,  pi.  xxii. 

t  l.'oius  (l(>  liiitaiiii]iio  l''i)«silp,  18S1,  pi.  V,  tig.  2. 

t  Ac:uliaii  (icoldny.  'f*';-,  p.  U'^. 

f,  Kois.sil  Flora  uf  HcIbIiiiii,  184«,  pi.  i.vi  and  i.vm. 


530 


SIR   J.   W.    DAWSON — FOSSILS   PROM    XEWFOTTNDLAND. 


two  species  of  SujiUaria,  S.  augustata  and  S,  nndulata,  \\\uch  are  scarcely  dis- 
tiuguisliable,  so  far  as  the  old  bark  is  concerned,  from  L.  vmrrayunum ;  and 
Goldenberg*  has  tw  similar  species,  S.  as^prm  and  S.  coarciata.  Golden- 
berg's  two  species  are  by  the  character  of  their  scars  luuiuestionably  Sig'dlar'm, 
bnt  S.  augudata  and  S.  unchdata  of  Sauveur,  especially  the  fnrn;er,  might 
well  have  been  lepidodondroid  trees  very  near  to  L.  murrayanum.  This, 
however,  could  be  certainly  ascertained  only  if  more  complete  specimens 
could  be  found.  On  the  whole  one  might  infer  that  as  the  spiral  and  lepi- 
dodendroid  characters  of  Sigdlaria  appear  most  prominently  on  young 
branches,  the  i.iore  lej)idodendroid  and  spiral  sigillaria  are  the  lowest  in  type 
and  the  ribbed  lepidodendra  among  the  highest  of  that  genus.  But  such  a 
conclusion  must  be  received  as  liable  to  many  exceptions. 


Anngtatki)  List  of  well  known  Plants. 


I.El'lDODENDnA. 


*  Lepidodendron  pirtvense,  Dawsonf. — Specimens  imperfectly  preserved,  but 
in  general  aspect  and  form  of  the  leaves  and  cones  resembling  this 
species,  are  not  infrequent  in  the  Newfoundland  shales.  I  see  that 
my  friend,  Mr.  Kidston,  in  the  British  Museum  catalogue  of  fossil 
plants,  refers  this  species  doubtfully  to  Lepidodendron  rimosum.  The 
latter  is  known  to  me  in  Nova  Scotia  only  by  the  l)ark  of  mature 
stems,  but  this  is  entirely  distinct  from  similar  portions  of  L.  pictoense, 
in  whif-h  the  leaf-bases  remain  small  but  occur  in  strips  closely  placed 
together  and  separated  by  dee])  clefts  in  the  bark.  In  short  it  be- 
longs to  a  type  altogether  different  from  that  of  L.  rimonnm.  Its 
nearest  Eur-  pean  allies  seem  to  be  L.  haidingeri  of  Ettingsbauscn  and 
L.  lympodioldes  of  Sternberg ;  but  the  latter  is  now  regarded  by 
Kidston  %  sis  identical  with  L.  Sternberg!. 


Fl  LICKS. 

*  Neuroptcrlii  rarinervis,  Bunbury. 

*iV.  auricidntii,  Brongt.  (or  allied  species). 

'■^  Altehopterls  lonchitira,  llron^^t.  ' 

'■'•  Pecopterls  abbreviata,  Brongt. 

*  P.  orcopteroides,  Brongt.  (or  allied  species). 

■^'  P.  (irborcscens,  Brongt.     This  fo.ssil  shows  rounded  impressions  of  sori  on 
the  upper  surface  of  the  pinnules. 

*  Planzen  versteinpninReii,  ls,57,  pi.  ix. 

tCHiimiian  Nntmalist,  vol.  viii,  ISii:!,  p.  431;  Acadiftii  r.eology,  1S78,  p.  4,S7,  fii;.  l'"". 

t  Urit.  :\Iiis.  CiiUhigiic,  1S8(1,  p.  I.'jI. 


CARnONIFEROUS   FOSSILS   FROM   NKWFOUNDLAND. 


537 


-1^  Sjihenopteris  (  Cheilaidhites)*  hoenlnghausi,  Brongt.  This  is  the  most  abun- 
dant fern  in  the  collection.  Several  of  the  specimens  show  the  outer 
edges  of  the  pinnules  strongly  reflected  in  the  manner  of  Adiantum 
"hen  ill  fructification. 

Sphenopteris,  sp.     A  larger  broad-lerved  species  but  imperfectly  preserved. 

■^  Didyopteria,  sp.  A  single  pinnule  not  well  preserved.  It  may  be  D. 
obliqita,  Bunbury,  which  is  found  at  Sydney,  Cape  Breton. 

Psaroiuiis,  sp.  A  stem  about  four  inches  thick,  consisting  outwardly  of 
numerous  aerial  roots,  and  probably  the  base  of  the  stem  of  a  small 
tree-fern. 

CALAMITKS,  ETC. 

■^  Cdlamites  suckovii,  Brongt. 

*  C.  cistii,  Brongt.     Some  of  the  specimens,  from  their  cylindrical  form, 

would  seem  to  have  been  erect. 

*  C.  cannivformis  (?).     Decorticated  stem. 

*  Annularia  sphenophjlloides,  Zenkel. 

*  A.  longijolla  (?),  Brongt. 

Fragment  of  stem  and  branches  of  Annularia  or  Aster ophylliles. 

*  Stigma riaficoides.    Specimens  of  large  size  occur  in  the  collection,  and  as  no 

spp  (mens  of  Sigillarin  are  present,  these  may  possibly  be  roots  of 
Lepidodendron.  It  would  seem  likely,  however,  that  sigillarids  will 
be  found  in  this  coal  field  as  in  others  in  eastern  America,  and  Mur- 
ray indeed  mentions  the  occurrence  of  such  trees,  though  he  does  not 
seem  to  have  collected  specimens.  Perhaps,  as  often  occurs,  they 
were  too  imperfect  to  deserve  preservation. 


ANIMAL    REMAINS. 

The  only  animal  remains  seen  in  the  collections  are  specimens  of  iVaiadte 
carbonarius  and  N.  elongatus,  Spirorbis  earbonariiis,  and  a  few  ostracoid 
shells.  There  are  also,  in  a  carbonaceus  baud,  some  coprolites  containing 
bony  scales. 

The  species  in  the  above  notes  marked  with  an  asterisk  are  all  found  in 
the  coal  fields  of  Nova  Scotia  and  Cape  Breton,  and  especially  in  the  lower 
beds  nearest  to  the  Millstone  grit.  The  collection  is  small,  and  some  of  the 
more  common  forms  of  the  coal  formation  are  absent.  This  is,  however,  no 
doubt,  accidental,  and  dependent  on  the  imperfection  of  the  collections,  as 
Mr.  Murray  in  his  report  of  1873  mentions  Sigillaria  as  seen  in  the  beds. 


•  Calymmatotlwca  of  Zeiller, 
LXXIX  -Bui, I,.  Guoi..  Soo.  Am.,  Vol,. '.',  189(t. 


538 


SIR   J.    W.   DAWSON — FOSSILS   FROM   NEWFOUNDLAND. 


Mr.  Howley  informs  me  that  next  season  he  hopes  to  collect  more  ex- 
tensively. 

The  specica  present  cannot  be  said  to  show  any  special  conditions  of  cli- 
mate or  locality,  other  than  the  fact  that,  as  in  northeastern  America  gener- 
ally, the  assemblage  of  species  is  more  accordant  with  that  of  western  Europe 
than  with  that  in  the  coal  regions  west  of  the  AUeghanies. 

Remarks  on  the  Coal  Formation  of  Newfoundland. 

Such  details  as  are  known  of  the  structure  and  distribution  of  the  Car- 
boniferous system  in  western  Newfoundland  will  be  found  in  the  general  re- 
])ort  on  the  geology  of  Newfoundland  by  Murray  and  Howley,*  and  in  Mr. 
Howley's  short  report  of  progress  for  ISSO.f  Murray  estimates  the  whole 
thickness  of  beds  seen  by  him  in  1873  at  6,450  feet,  composed  as  follows  in 
ascending  order : 

a.  Coarse  conglomerate,  with  bowlders  and  pebbles  cemented  in 

a  greenish  sand  ;  also  sandstones  and  sandy  shales  (this 
probably  corresponds  to  the  lowest  Carboniferous  or 
Hortou  series  of  Nova  Scotia) 1,300  feet. 

b.  Gypsum,  dark-colored  limestone  and  black  shale,  argillaceous 

and  marly  shale  (this  is  probably  the  lower  division  of 
the  Windsor  or  Gypsiferous  or  Carboniferous  limestone 
series  of  Nova  Scotia) 150  feet. 

c.  Gray  and  black  limestones  with  marine  organic  remains  and 

veins  of  galena,  included  in  thick  beds  of  variegated  marls 
and  sandstones  (this  is  probably  the  equivalent  of  the  upper 
part  of  the  Windsor  series  in  Nova  Scotia)       .         .  2,000  feet. 

d.  Brown  and  reddish  sandstones  and  conglomerates,  with  green- 

ish micaceous  and  arenaceous  shales ;  carbonized  plants 

(this  is  the  "  Millstone  grit "  series  of  Nova  Scotia)         .  2,C00  feet. 

e.  Gray  and  red  sandstones,  brown  and  black  shales  and  clays : 

abundant  remains  of  plants;  beds  of  coal  (this  is  the 

lower  part  of  the  productive  Coal  Measures)    .        .         .  1,000  feet. 

The  sequence  corresponds  very  closely  in  mineral  character  with  that  in 
some  parts  of  Nova  Scotia  and  C^ape  Breton,  l)ut  the  development  of  Coal 
Measure  strata  appears  comparatively  small.  Mr.  Howley,  however,  in  his 
later  investigations  finds  that  the  upper  members  should  be  greatly  ex- 
tended, and  is  now  disposed  to  estimate  these  upper  members  at  not  less 
than  7,500  feet,  which  would  better  accord  with  the  thicker  portions  of  the 

*  London,  18H1,  pp.  85  et  seq.  and  308  et  seq. 
tot.  Johns,  Newfoundland. 


CHARACTER   OF    NEWFOUNDLAND   COAL. 


539 


Nova  Scotia  coal  areas,  and  would  also  give  a  greater  probable  value  to  tlie 
productive  Coal  Measures.  In  so  far  as  these  are  concerned,  the  quality  and 
distribution  of  the  coal  would  seem,  as  miglit  he  expected,  to  resemble  that 
in  the  eastern  coal  fields  of  Cape  Breton.  The  beds  as  yet  found  appear 
from  Mr.  Howley's  report  to  be  six  in  number,  ranging  from  14  inches  to 
8  feet  in  thickness,  three  of  them  having  over  four  feet  of  good  coal.  The 
coal  is  apparently  a  free-burning  bituminous  variety,  resembling  that  of  the 
Cape  Bretou  mines. 


BULL. 


540 


SIR   J,   W.    DAWSON — FOSSILS   FROM   NEWFOUNDLAND. 


EXPLANATION  OF  PLATES.* 

Plate  21 — Fossil  Plants  from  Newfoundland  and  New  Brunswick. 

Figure  1 — Lepidodendron  murrayanum,  Dn.     Leafy  branch  (invorted). 
Figure  2—  "  "  Old  stem. 

Figures —  '•  "  Leaf  scars  of  stem  and  branch. 

Figure  4 — Lepidodendron  cliflonense,  Dn.     Leafy  branch. 


Plate  22 — Fossil  Plants  from  New  Brunswick. 

Figure  5 — Lepidodendron  cli/ionense.     Old  stem. 
Figure  6—  "  "  Leaf  scars  of  stem  and  branch. 

Figure  7 —  "  "  Strobile  borne  on  slender  stem. 

Figures—  "  "  Branches,  as  seen  on  a  bed  of  sandstone ;  re- 

duced to  one-eighteenth  natural  size. 


*The  titles  printed  on  plates  21  and  22  are  imperfect. 


BULL.    CEOL.  ^^0C    AM 


vo;..  ':  icoo  pt.  SI 


I 


*OSS    ENQ.  ( 


BULL..    CEOL    300    AM 


VOr,.  C    lap?    Pt,    82. 


Fig  6. 


FOSSIL    PLANTS   FROM    NEW    KOUNDLAND. 


MOSS    ENO    CO..  H.  Y. 


